Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 14 December (BelTA) – Belarus would like to involve representatives of the Lithuanian expert community as much as possible into the project to build a nuclear power plant in Belarus, BelTA learned from the latest interview Ambassador of Belarus to Lithuania Alexander Korol gave to the Litovsky Kuryer (Lithuanian courier) newspaper.

The ambassador said: “We sincerely believe that together we can make the Belarusian nuclear power plant even safer and more reliable. As you know, even minimal cooperation between our scientists on the matter has resulted in a storm of criticism in Lithuania. The current Lithuanian leadership prefers keeping the discussion about the Belarusian nuclear power plant restricted to politicians instead of experts and scientists. It is likely the cause of their misconception about what is truly going on at the Belarusian nuclear power plant construction site.”

In his words, Belarus labors under the belief that every country has the right to develop its own nuclear energy industry. Belarus pays close attention to safety without a shadow of a doubt. “It is only natural taking into account the catastrophic consequences that befell Belarus due to the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant,” noted the diplomat.

The ambassador underlined that Belarus views nuclear safety as a practical category, not a political one. “We work together with the IAEA, which boasts the highest level of expertise in this field. The International Atomic Energy Agency has carried out a number of nuclear safety evaluation missions such as missions to evaluate nuclear energy infrastructure, regulatory infrastructure, and the construction site taking into account external events. We choose missions and their scope bearing in mind practical benefits for the safety of the project. The IAEA even describes Belarus as the most advanced country out of all the nuclear industry newcomers,” pointed out the ambassador.

According to Alexander Korol, several weeks ago Belarus presented its national report on results of stress testing the nuclear power plant. A copy was forwarded to the European Commission and made freely available online. Anyone — from experts and scientists to politicians and members of the general public — can peruse the document. Reports about past IAEA missions are also available to the public. “If they are not a testimony to our openness, then I can hardly imagine what can be such a testimony in the eyes of our Lithuanian colleagues,” added the ambassador.